How to fix hard drive not showing in Windows 10 File Explorer

When connecting a mechanical hard drive (HDD), solid-state drive (SSD), or an external USB hard drive to a computer, Windows 10 can usually notice and set it upwards automatically. However, sometimes, a newly added drive may not show up in File Explorer, which could indicate a number of problems.

For instance, it could mean that there is a physical problem with the data or power connection. If the difficult drive does not appear in File Explorer, this could signal that the device is disabled, offline, or does not have a drive letter. You may be trying to connect a bulldoze previously installed on another computer, the partition on the USB bulldoze may be corrupted, or you could be dealing with a raw drive that was never configured. Therefore information technology was never initialized or formatted.

Whatsoever the reason information technology might be, Windows 10 includes multiple ways to fix the issue and regain access to the drive using Device Manager, Disk Management, and command-line tools similar diskpart.

In this Windows x guide, we will walk you through several ways to troubleshoot a hard bulldoze that refuses to testify up in File Explorer.

How to set missing hard drive in File Explorer using physical troubleshooting
How to fix missing hard drive in File Explorer using Device Manager
How to ready missing hard drive in File Explorer using Deejay Management
How to fix missing hard drive in File Explorer updating commuter
How to fix missing hard drive in File Explorer using diskpart

How to fix missing hard drive in File Explorer using physical troubleshooting

On Windows 10, if a traditional mechanical hard drive (HDD) or solid-state drive (SSD) does not announced in File Explorer, there are many reasons why this is happening, but before checking and modifying the arrangement settings, effort these troubleshooting steps:

Confirm the hard drive is correctly continued to the computer and receiving power.
If it is an external USB hard drive, disconnect information technology and attempt a unlike USB port. If you lot are using a USB hub, attempt to connect the drive directly to the figurer.
If it is an internal hard bulldoze, make sure the data and power cables are correctly continued to the storage device, motherboard, and power supply. When checking the internal components, make certain to power off and unplug the figurer before commencement the procedure.
Connect the bulldoze to some other estimator to decide the problem is not the device.
Access the figurer Basic Input Output Organisation (BIOS) or Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI), and make certain the firmware is detecting the storage. Since the motherboard firmware is unlike per-manufacturer and fifty-fifty per-device model, make sure to cheque the manufacturer back up website for more specific instructions.

Once you determine that information technology is non a concrete trouble, then you can utilize the following recommendations to set up the well-nigh common problem prevent File Explorer from showing a hard bulldoze.

How to fix missing hard drive in File Explorer using Device Manager

In the rare case that the storage does not appear in Disk Management and File Explorer, it could hateful that the hard drive seems to exist disabled. If this is the case, you can enable it chop-chop using Device Manager.

To enable a hard drive using Device Managing director, use these steps:

Open Showtime.
Search for Device Manager and click the top result to open the app.
Expand the Disk drives branch.
Right-click the hard drive in question and select the Properties option.

Source: Windows Central
Click the Commuter tab.
Click the Enable Device button.

Source: Windows Central
Click the OK push.

Later on you complete the steps, the difficult bulldoze and data should be accessible on the figurer.

How to gear up missing difficult drive in File Explorer using Disk Direction

In that location are a few requirements for a hard drive to exist available in File Explorer. The device must be online and initialized. It needs to accept a segmentation properly configured. And information technology has to have a bulldoze letter assigned, or it should be mounted as a folder.

If you are dealing with whatever of these bug, the steps beneath will assistance you to troubleshoot and prepare the most mutual issues with Disk Management.

Set drive online

To bring a hard drive online, employ these steps:

Open Start.
Search for Deejay Management and click the pinnacle result to open the app.
Right-click the disk with the "Offline label" and select the Online choice.

Source: Windows Fundamental

Afterward yous complete the steps, if the hard drive was offline and previously configured, it should appear in File Explorer. If the drive was offline but never configured, go on with the steps beneath.

Initialize drive

To initialize a hard drive on Windows 10, apply these steps:

Open Start.
Search for Disk Management and click the meridian upshot to open the app.
Correct-click the disk with the "Unknown" label and select the Initialize Disk option.

Source: Windows Central
Under the "Select disks" section, bank check the drive you want to initialize.
Select the GPT (GUID Partition Table) choice.

Source: Windows Central
Click the OK button.

Once you consummate the steps, this action will erase everything on the drive and prepare it to be formatted if the storage was never initialized.

Import strange drive

If the bulldoze you lot are trying to admission was configured equally a dynamic disk on another computer, it volition announced as a foreign drive on a different device, and y'all will demand to import information technology using the Disk Management tool. This process should grant y'all access to the data without destroying it, only it'south still recommended to create a backup of the information before proceeding.

To import a hard drive with a dynamic configuration to make information technology accessible through File Explorer, use these steps:

Open Start.
Search for Disk Management and click the top outcome to open the app.
Right-click the disk with the "Dynamic" characterization and select the Import Foreign Disks option.

Source: Windows Central
Under the "Disk groups" section, select the Foreign disk group (one of i disks) item.

Source: Windows Central
Click the OK push.
Click the OK button once again.

In one case you complete the steps, the hard drive will be imported, and the data volition be accessible from File Explorer or any other application.

Configure drive letter

On Windows 10, when the hard drive is online and initialized and does not announced in the arrangement, there could be two reasons. The bulldoze does not have a drive letter. Or if it was continued to another estimator, and the new organisation is now trying to assign the same bulldoze letter already assigned to some other drive on the automobile.

To assign a bulldoze letter of the alphabet to storage media on Windows 10, use these steps:

Open up Showtime.
Search for Disk Management and click the top result to open the app.
Right-click the partition on the hard drive without a drive letter and select the Change Bulldoze Letter and Paths option.

Source: Windows Fundamental
Click the Add button.
Select the Assign the following commuter letter choice.

Source: Windows Central
Apply the drop-downwards menu option and select a drive letter of the alphabet – for example, Z, X, or Y.

Source: Windows Primal
Click the OK button.

After y'all consummate the steps, the difficult drive data should at present be attainable using File Explorer.

Configure new partition

If the bulldoze is online and initialized, you lot may exist dealing with a drive without a formatted partition. In this case, you can use the Deejay Direction wizard to configure and assign a letter to partition.

To prepare up and format a hard drive to allow information technology to appear in File Explorer, use these steps:

Open Start.
Search for Deejay Direction and click the tiptop result to open up the app.
Right-click the sectionalisation on the hard bulldoze without a drive letter and select the New Uncomplicated Volume pick.

Source: Windows Cardinal

Quick tip: Ordinarily, the "basic" drive will have a blue stripe indicating the first and end of the segmentation. Too, make sure to select the correct storage, as the post-obit steps will erase everything on the hard drive you will choose.
Click the Next push button.
Click the Next push to apply all the bachelor infinite for the partition. Otherwise, specify the size in the Simple volume size in MB option.

Source: Windows Central
Select the Assign the following driver alphabetic character selection.
Utilize the drop-downwardly menu choice and select a drive alphabetic character – for example, Z, X, or Y.

Source: Windows Central
Click the Next push.
Select the Format this volume with the following settings option.
Employ the "File system" drib-downward bill of fare and select the NTFS option.
Use the "Allocation unit" size drop-downward menu and select the Default selection.
In the "Volume characterization" field, confirm a descriptive proper name for the bulldoze – for case, data.
Check the Perform a quick format option.

Source: Windows Central
Click the Adjacent push.
Click the Cease button.

Once you complete the steps, the hard bulldoze volition exist listed on the "This PC" folio of File Explorer, and y'all can start saving files in it.

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How to fix missing hard drive in File Explorer updating commuter

If the problem is related to the storage commuter, y'all can reinstall or update the driver to the latest version to resolve the consequence.

To reinstall the hard drive driver, use these steps:

Open Start.
Search for Device Manager and click the top result to open the app.
Aggrandize the Disk drives branch.
Correct-click the hard bulldoze in question and select the Uninstall device option.

Source: Windows Central
Click the Uninstall button.
Restart the estimator

One time you complete the steps, Windows 10 should reinstall the driver automatically, and the hard drive should at present appear in File Explorer.

Update difficult drive driver

If the problem persists, it is recommended to download the latest available driver from the bulldoze manufacturer support website and use their instructions to update the driver.

If the support website does not offer any instructions, unpack the driver aught folder, and so use these steps:

Open Starting time.
Search for Device Manager and click the pinnacle result to open the app.
Expand the Disk drives branch.
Correct-click the hard drive in question and select the Update driver option.

Source: Windows Key
Select the Browse my computer for drivers pick.

Source: Windows Fundamental
Click the Browse button.

Source: Windows Central
Select the folder with the extracted driver files.
Click the OK button.
Check the Include subfolders pick.
Click the Next button.
Click the Close button.

After you complete the steps, the commuter will install, and the hard drive should exist accessible on Windows x.

How to fix missing difficult drive in File Explorer using diskpart

Alternatively, if the hard drive appears in the Disk Management, but if the storage is not usable, pregnant that you lot cannot admission the data, you cannot use the format option or assign a bulldoze letter, then information technology could be a logical problem. If this is the case, y'all tin can employ a control-line tool, such as diskpart, to clean the drive and start from scratch.

To use diskpart to missing hard drive in File Explorer, use these steps:

Open up Start.
Search for Command Prompt, right-click the superlative result and select the Run as administrator option.
Type the following control to launch the diskpart tool and press Enter:

diskpart
Blazon the post-obit control to list the bachelor disks and press Enter:

list disk
Blazon the following command to select the hard drive not showing up in File Explorer and printing Enter:

select disk 1

In the command, make sure to select the correct bulldoze. Otherwise, you may terminate upwards erasing the data in the wrong storage, which cannot be undone.
Type the following command to completely erase the drive and press Enter:

make clean

Source: Windows Central

Warning: The "clean" command will erase everything, including data, partition, type, and the drive volition announced blank with the label unknown and not initialized.
Type the post-obit control to create a segmentation using the bachelor space and press Enter:

create sectionalization chief
Type the following control to select the newly created partitioning and press Enter:

select partitioning 1
Blazon the following control to set the partition as agile and press Enter:

agile
Type the post-obit command to format the segmentation with the NTFS file arrangement and press Enter:

format FS=NTFS
Type the following command to assign a drive alphabetic character and press Enter:

assign letter of the alphabet=Z

Source: Windows Central

In the control, change "Z" for another drive letter not already in utilise.
Type the following command to close diskpart and press Enter:

exit

One time you complete the steps, the difficult bulldoze volition be formatted, it will include a new drive letter, and it should now announced in File Explorer.

More Windows 10 resources

For more helpful articles, coverage, and answers to common questions about Windows ten, visit the post-obit resources:

Windows 10 on Windows Central – All you need to know
Windows 10 help, tips, and tricks
Windows 10 forums on Windows Central

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